Changing Lives
by Sehrezad
Summary: Do you remember Brenda from Blood Drops? If you do, it is good because she is here and changing the lives of two CSIs. WS
1. The Accident

**Changing Lives**

_Disclaimer: I don't own anything connecting to the show._

_Summary: Maybe it is the beginning of a new chapter in the lives of my favourite CSI couple. (WS of course)  
_

_Spoiler: 1.7 – Blood Drops, and this story takes place somewhere during Season 3 but it has nothing to do with it, it's just because of the timeline_

"At last! We're done!" – Sara said with a touch of relief in her voice while she closed her bag and took a brief glance at her watch which didn't escape Warrick's attention.

"Well! Well! Miss Sidle!" – He said shaking his head. – "Are you hurrying somewhere?"

He has already been wondering for a while what could have happened to Sara as she was rather strange lately. And it wasn't just her changed attitude towards work but her whole behaviour. It was a totally different Sara and not the one whom he first met a little more than two years ago. However, it wasn't a bad thing as this new Sara was kinder to everybody and she was more relaxed than the old one. And what is more important, she was happy. This was the first thing that Warrick noticed. He noticed her beautiful smile which couldn't be seen before and from that moment on he was more and more attracted to her. Yes, he realized that it is impossible not to fall in love with Sara Sidle.

"Well, the truth is that…" – Sara began a little bit embarrassed – "… that I have to meet somebody and I don't want to be late."

"Oh… I haven't known that you have somebody in your life."

"Well. Not really… I mean… literally not… I mean… argh… Let's go at last!" – With this she left the house hurriedly.

Warrick was just standing there and was thinking about what he had just heard. It didn't come as a surprise to him that Sara is seeing somebody. Somewhere deep inside he knew that this could be the reason for Sara's change. Nevertheless he was disappointed. Not because he didn't want Sara to be happy but because he wanted to be the one who made her happy. Of course he was totally aware of the fact that he is the only one who can be blamed for not being that person as he did nothing to get closer to Sara. And now it is too late. He shook his head to chase these thoughts away and went after Sara.

By the time Warrick left the house Sara had already been sitting in the car.

"I'm driving." – She stated smiling. – "Come on! Let's go!"

She was really in a high spirit. Warrick just smiled and walked to the car. He was still smiling when he got into the vehicle but his smiled froze when he glanced at Sara who was talking with somebody on the phone at that moment. This wasn't the reason why he began to feel nervous but the fact the Sara's whole attitude had changed within seconds. Not long before she was extremely happy and relaxed but now she was tense and visibly frightened. She was so pale that Warrick couldn't even imagine that this is possible.

Suddenly Sara hung up the phone and without saying anything she started the engine and started off with a loud creak of the tyres. Warrick was totally at loss, he couldn't imagine what could cause Sara to change so suddenly. Many ideas entered his mind but neither of them seemed possible. He has never seen Sara like that before.

Sara was driving so fast that it appeared to Warrick a real wonder that they were not stopped by the police for exceeding the speed limit. After a while Warrick noticed that they were going out of Las Vegas. This was the point when he couldn't bear any longer just to wait for Sara to say anything.

"Sara." – He started gently as he didn't want to scare his partner who seemed to be unaware of everything but the road in front of her.

"Sara!" – He said again but this time a little bit louder as he didn't get any reaction for the first time. This time Sara turned her head towards Warrick just for a brief moment than went back to concentrate on the road.

Now Warrick was really frightened. What he saw in that brief moment in Sara's eyes shocked him. They were full of fear and despair. He also noticed that Sara was surprised at finding him sitting next to her. She was so deep in thoughts that she must have forgotten that he was also there. He also observed that Sara was clenching the steering wheel so tight that her hands became white. He was terrified of finding out what could have happened.

She was driving for a while when Warrick saw a long row of cars in front of them.

"What the…" – He said rather to himself than to Sara. The cars were approaching rapidly but Sara instead of decelerating, stepped on the gas pedal even more and pulled over to the next lane which was void of cars and drove on. After they had left most of the cars behind them Warrick saw the sirens of the police cars and the ambulances, even the firemen were there. Then he saw a yellow school bus which was lying on its side on the other side of the road and which was in a rather bad condition. Not far from the bus there was a car, too, which was crashed as well. He looked at Sara who became tenser than before.

When they reached the police cars Sara stopped the car and jumped out of it. After showing her CSI card to the man approaching her she ran towards the bus. By this time Warrick left the car as well and went after Sara. It was an awful sight that greeted him. Paramedics were everywhere and, which was worse, injured children were everywhere. The teachers were running from one child to the other to make sure that everybody was there. Unfortunately they couldn't make sure that everybody was well as well because, as Warrick could make it out, there were seriously injured kids, too. It was a total chaos which was made worse by the fact that the parents of the children also began to arrive at the scene. Warrick's heart sank when he finally spotted out Sara in the middle of this chaos standing there helplessly like a child who lost his parent in the crowd.

She was turning into every direction as if she were looking for somebody when she froze.

"Brenda!" – She shouted and began to run towards an ambulance.

Warrick followed her from a distance still not quite sure what was happening. Then he stopped and watched the scene unfolding in front of him.

Sara was crying and smiling at the same time while she was hugging a little blonde girl who was sitting on a stretcher covered in a blanket seemingly unharmed. Warrick went closer and for his surprise he recognized the little girl. He remembered well the case when a girl made her whole family killed because of her father's abusing her. This girl was the only one who wasn't killed then. He remembered, too, that Sara was the one who was looking after her during the case but as far as he could recall it she was not very happy about it. In spite of it, it seemed to Warrick that Sara and the girl got very close since then. Brenda appeared to Warrick the same as he first saw her in that police car about two years ago.

Now he was standing close enough to hear Sara hushing her. Meanwhile, the paramedic, who left them when Sara got to Brenda, arrived.

Warrick went even closer and finally he was standing right next to them. Sara smiled at him acknowledging his presence then turned to the paramedic and began to talk with her. Brenda also looked up at him and Warrick was sure that he saw a faint smile on her lips. They were looking at each other all the time while Sara was speaking with the other woman but at some point during the conversation Brenda climbed down from the stretcher using only her right arm, it seemed that the other one had injured in the accident, and went to Warrick and took his left hand still looking up at him.

He heard the paramedic talking about taking Brenda to the hospital.

"We'll take her in." – He stated without looking up.

Sara turned towards him wanting to tell him that he had better go back to the lab before both of them get into trouble but she couldn't open her mouth when she saw the two of them standing next to each other hand in hand.

"I don't want to go in the ambulance, Mummy." - Brenda turned to Sara. She hesitated for a little while as she really didn't want Warrick to get into trouble because of her. However, she couldn't say no to his daughter.

"Okey then. It's settled. Let's go to the hospital and get your arm examined!" – She said and put her arm on Brenda's shoulder while the girl was still holding Warrick's hand. This was the way how the three of them set off to the hospital after having said goodbye to the paramedic.

**TBC**

_So this was the first chapter. I hope you liked it because I'm planning to continue it. I tried to do my best but I found it rather difficult to write about other people's feeling__s. Please tell me what you think, I would like to improve my style and writing skills. And before I forget, sorry for the mistakes._


	2. In the Hospital

**Changing Lives**

_Disclaimer: I don't own anything connecting to the show._

_Summary: Maybe it is the beginning of a new chapter in the lives of my favourite CSI couple._

_Spoiler: 1.7 – Blood Drops, and this story takes place somewhere during Season 3 but it has nothing to do with it, it's just because of the timeline  
_

Chapter 2: In the Hospital

Sara sighed as she watched the nurse took Brenda to x-ray. She managed to calm down somewhat by now, however, she still felt at the edge of crying whenever she thought of the news of the accident. While she was driving to the scene she feared the worst. The pictures that ran through her mind while she was driving made her feel sick. She just couldn't bear the thought of losing Brenda. During these two years since she knew her, this little girl became the most important thing in her life. It can be said that she changed Sara and her view on life. Since Brenda was with her everything seemed better and it was good to live. But suddenly everything seemed to vanish just within a single moment and this filled Sara with despair.

But fortunately Brenda was well. She just had a broken arm which can heal and after that they can just forget this whole nightmare.

Sara smiled as she watched her daughter got into the lift with the nurse then went to the corridor. In the corridor she saw Warrick who was standing by the window looking outside. Just the mere sight of him calmed her nerves and made the horrible pictures, which were still present in her mind, go away. Now she was sure, although she didn't know why, that everything would be all right. She felt very thankful to him for staying with her during this nightmare. And although she totally forgot about him during the drive to the scene, she was well aware of him afterwards.

First there was the scene with Brenda. This surprised Sara but in a good sense. She has never seen Brenda so calm in the company of a man. She was very withdrawn among people, especially when she was near men. But in the case of Warrick it wasn't so. Of course Brenda didn't say a single word. In fact she didn't talk to anybody but Sara. But in spite of this fact she seemed that she really liked Warrick.

And then there was the drive to the hospital. She was sitting with Brenda in the backseat but all the while she could feel Warrick's eyes on them. Whenever she glanced up from Brenda her eyes met his. It felt so good that there was somebody with her and she didn't have to do this whole thing alone.

"Hey." – She went behind Warrick.

"Hey. Is everything all right with Brenda?" – He asked touching Sara's shoulder after turning to her.

"Yeah, she just has a broken arm. Otherwise everything is all right."

"And you?"

"I'm all right." – Sara answered but this question suddenly brought back all the horrible pictures of her mind and the real ones which she saw on the scene as well and she suddenly felt the previous fear. She couldn't answer immediately, she just stood there without a word.

"I'm fine." – She said finally although she didn't know who she wanted to convince, herself or Warrick.

"Are you sure? You scared me."

"Yeah. I just didn't know… I just couldn't imagine… It was so horrible that I… Oh my God, Warrick, I thought that I would lose her." – Sara finally admitted and with this she began to sob.

Warrick watched her with sympathy first just stroking her shoulder then when he couldn't bear anymore to see her like that, he hugged her and tried to soothe her. In the arms of Warrick Sara felt safe that's why she hugged his waist tight, she didn't want to lose this feeling. After a while she managed to stop sobbing and to calm down but she still clung to Warrick as if her life depended on it.

"I'm sorry." – She said finally.

"For what?" – Warrick asked surprised looking down the woman who was standing in front of him resting her head on his shoulder.

"For this whole thing." – Sara lifted her head to look at Warrick. – "You should be home already and sleep and not here in the hospital."

Warrick just rolled his eyes.

"I'm exactly where I want to be." – He said frowning as he realized what a commonplace it was what he had just said.

"Thank you." – Sara said with a smile. She felt much better. She didn't know what she would have done without Warrick and for a millionth time on that day she felt how good it was to have him beside her.

At that moment she felt somebody tugging her sleeve. She looked down and saw Brenda who had already had her arm in a sling.

"Brenda!" – Sara said surprised while she left Warrick's embrace. They didn't even noticed that Brenda was back from x-ray not to mention the fact that her arm had already been put into a sling.

"I'm ready. We can go home." – The girl said turning to Warrick and stretching her good arm towards him which Warrick accepted without hesitation.

"In that case the coach is ready, My Princess." – He said smiling and with this they started towards the elevator.

Sara was just standing there not knowing – for the second time that day – what to do with her little girl's strange behaviour. Not as if she had wanted to complain about it. But she wasn't used to it. However, she knew that she could get used to it.

"All right." – She said to the strange pair. – "I'm there in a minute, just have some words with the doctor."

Warrick turned his head towards Sara with a huge smile on his face then he entered the elevator with Brenda and disappeared from Sara's sight. She was smiling and shaking her head while wondering if Brenda also felt the same safety next to Warrick as she. Maybe this was the reason why Brenda trusted him.

**TBC**

_What do you think? Please write me! Oh, and if you have any idea how to continue it, feel free to share it with me. I'm open to everything.__ Not as if I don't have any idea (I do have some!) but your ideas can be more interesting than the ones I have. And again sorry for the mistakes.  
_


	3. The Story

**Changing Lives**

_Disclaimer: I don't own anything connecting to the show. _

_Author's Note: Here is the new chapter. Sorry, I know that I'm rather slow at working (very slow) but I hope you are still interested in it. Thank you for your reviews, I liked them very much and they were really encouraging. Please write more!_

_And thank you for the flashback idea, RED LIGHTING, I made use of it. I hope you like it._

Chapter 3: The Story

It was in the evening when they left the hospital. In the car Sara gave a call to Grissom to tell him that there was an emergency and that was why she and Warrick couldn't get to the lab that day and process the evidence there. He was surprisingly sypathetic. He also let them to take the night off as they pulled a double shift that day. Sara didn't argued with him. She was exhausted and wanted to spend some time with her daughter.

By the time they reached Sara's apartment, Brenda was fast asleep in the backseat next to her.

"We are here." – Warrick stated while he stopped the car.

Sara looked at the little girl and sighed.

"I don't want to wake her. She is so sweet and she must be very exhausted."

"You don't have to." – He smiled at Sara and got out of the car. He opened the backdoor and carefully lifted Brenda out. – "Now, we can go."

Sara just smiled at him then they walked up to Sara's apartment. When they got to the door Brenda was still sleeping in the arms of Warrick. Sara opened the door and they stepped in.

"Where is her room?" – Warrick asked.

„It's there." – Sara pointed towards the room opposite to the entrance. – „But she is sleeping in my room, actually." – Sara said sheepishly and after she saw Warrick's questioning look she continued. – „She still has nightmare and every night she finally ends up in my bed."

In Sara's room Warrick put Brenda on the bed then stepped behind to let Sara tuck the sleeping girl in. He was amused how natural Sara seemed in this mother role. He watched her as she took off Brenda's shoes then tucked her in. Involuntarily his thoughts shifted to a scene where Sara was doing this to their own little girl. He shook his head to clear his thoughts. He didn't want to go there now, maybe some other time. Now that it turned out that Sara didn't see anyone after all, he felt that he might have a chance.

„Good night, sweetie!" – Sara kissed her daughter's forehead. But just as she began to stand up, Brenda opened her eyes.

„Good night, mommy!" – She said with sleepy eyes then she turned towards Warrick. – „Good night, Warrick!" – With this she was asleep again.

Sara smiled at her partner then they left the room.

„She is a very cute girl." – Warrick said as he closed the door.

„Yeah, she is." – Sara agreed a little bit embarrassed. She felt guilty because she hadn't talked about Brenda earlier. Because of this and because Warrick didn't want to ask such questions which Sara might not want to answer, the silence between them as they stood in front of the closed door became rather awkward. The silence was broken by Warrick's growling stomach. This eased the tension between them as both of them laughed out loud.

„I guess we should eat something. We didn't even eat lunch." – Sara said.

„No. I mean I don't want to disturb you. You must be very tired."

„Yeah, you are right. I'm very tired but I'm more hungry. So let's eat something! Besides, you must have some questions." – With this she walked towards the kitchen with Warrick following her.

„Look! I don't think that any of this would be my business, so you shou…"

„No. It isn't true. You sent the whole afternoon and a great part of the evening in the hospital. You have every right to know what had happened." – Sara said while she was examining the content of her fridge. – „Do not give me that look, Brown. Ask what you want and I will answer." – Warrick smiled at this and Sara continued in a teasing tone after she had managed to find some boxes of Chinese which were left from the previous day. – „If I were you I would make use of this situation. You won't hear this sentence from me again."

„Okey then. Did you adopt her?"

„Yes." – Sara answered while giving one of the boxes to him. – "Although it isn't official yet. But soon it will be. And before you would ask it, yes, this is the reasons why I haven't told anything yet. And I was afraid of your reactions, too." – She said this last part barely audibly, however, Warrick heard it very clear and became rather confused by this statement.

„Why?" – He couldn't understand why Sara would be afraid of their reactions. Usually she wasn't interested in other people's opinion.

„I don't know. I'm just not a mother figure. I have still doubts of my ability as a mother and if I have them, you would also have had them and I'm sure that you wouldn't have kept them for yourselves. And I was not ready to face them. I have many things to fight without them as well." – Sara said tucking into her food.

„Don't say this. What a saw today didn't show me that you are incompetent as a mother. I think that you are wonderful. Brenda loves you and she seems to be very happy with you. This is what is important and not our opinions." – Warrick said reassuringly and took Sara's hand and squeezed it. – „And have faith in yourself!"

„All right, but it isn't so easy, you know. I still remember the day when this adoption idea got into my mind. I almost went crazy.

_Sara has been pacing in her apartment for nearly 2 hours. She visited Brenda this afternoon which became a custom of hers lately. Ever since she first visited that little girl whom she had to take care__ of during the investigation, she went to see her as frequently as she could. She loved that little girl who was left lonely in the world. Maybe this was the first reason why she became so attached to her. And now this affection towards Brenda was the reason why she could stay in one place._

_Her brain was at full speed. Brenda's words were still very vivid in her mind. „Somebody wants to adopt me." And if it hadn't been enough, the look of her big blue eyes didn't want to leave her memory, either. „Sara! I was thinking very much." In spite of her present state of emotions, Sara had to smile at the serious tone of the girl. She seemed to be very mature at that moment. But her following words still made her shiver. „I don't want a new family. I want to stay with you." After this statement Sara was speechless. Until that moment it didn't even occur to her to be her mother. She wanted Brenda to be happy in a real family and she knew that she wasn't the one to give it to her. Unfortunately when she tried to explain it to the girl, Brenda took the explanations amiss and when they parted Brenda was sure that Sara didn't love her._

_Sara sat down on her sofa and buried her head into her palms. She wanted to cry. She was at loss about what to do. A part of her really wanted Brenda to have a real family, but on the other hand she knew that it was a real miracle that Brenda was willing to talk to her. Brenda didn't speak to anybody except her, not even to the children around her._

_Sara finally sighed and leant against the cushions behind her. She was tired. In the last two hours she tried to persuade herself that Brenda would be much happier in a real family. Then when she failed, she tried to persuade herself that she never wanted a child. When she also failed with this, she argued about her incapability as a parent. This was an easy task for her as she had thousands of arguments for this one but somehow finally she always thought of Brenda when she said: „You are my mommy."_

„I didn't know what to do." – Sara said as she slowly finished her dinner. – „I almost went nuts."

„But judging the present state I assume that finally you managed to decide." – Warrick said smiling.

„I think that this was the best decision that I have ever made."

„And what about the other parents who wanted to adopt Brenda?"

„Fortunately I know a guy who happens to be influence on such matters and he helped me. I think without him Brenda wouldn't be here." – She answered but hardly had she finished her sentence, she yawned.

„I think this is my clue." – Warrick said smiling while he stood up from the table. „Thanks for the dinner."

„You are welcome. You can always find one or two Chinese boxes half empty in my fridge. Brenda loves it very much but she can't eat the whole. So anytime you carve for a little Chinese you know where you find it." – Sara said jokingly and both of them laughed up.

„I'll keep it in mind. Thanks."

Warrick said goodbye at the door and before he left he bent down and kissed Sara's cheek. Sara smiled at him then watched Warrick walking towards the stairs.

„Warrick!" – She shouted after him. He stopped and turned around. – „Thank you."

Warrick just cast at her his beautiful smile then continued walking. However, Sara stayed at the door still looking at the direction in which Warrick disappeared with a huge grin on her face.

**TBC**


	4. The Next Day

**Changing Lives**

_Disclaimer: I don't own anything connecting to the show._

_Summary: Maybe it is the beginning of a new chapter in the lives of my favourite CSI couple._

_Spoiler: 1.7 – Blood Drops, and this story takes place somewhere during Season 3 but it has nothing to do with it, it's just because of the timeline_

Chapter 4: The Next Day

By the time Brenda woke up next morning Sara was already in the kitchen making breakfast. She walked into the kitchen sleepily and silently sat down by the table.

"Good morning, sweetie!" Sara greeted her daughter when she noticed the little girl.

Brenda gave her a little smile. Sara walked up to her and kissed the top of her head.

"How is your arm?"

"Fine." She answered sighing. Sara looked at her observing her face. She knew that Brenda would never complain about anything so she wanted to make sure that she was really all right.

"Okay." She said finally and went back preparing the breakfast. "I'm making pancakes, okay?"

"I like pancake." Brenda stated in a law voice.

"I know." Sara smiled at her daughter who smiled back at her. After Sara got ready she sat down and they began to eat without any further conversation.

Their relationship was rather strange, at least for an outsider. Neither of them was talkative, especially Brenda, who didn't communicate with anybody but Sara. This meant that most of the time they just sat in silence mutually enjoying each other's company Somehow they completely understood each other without any words. None of them knew what this connection was between the two of them but they felt that this was something special. This was the reason why Brenda let Sara enter her little world which she was unwilling to share with anybody else and this was also the reason why Sara finally let her own fiercely protected world open for Brenda.

Neither of them was aware of the fact that they were slowly but surely changing each other's life. Although they were not ready to leave their old fears behind just yet. For this they needed somebody else.

After breakfast they were discussing what to do that day when somebody knocked on the door. Sara went to answer it and when she opened the door, she glanced into a pair of warm green eyes.

"Hi!" She said smiling at Warrick.

"Hello." He answered. "I just wanted to know how Brenda's doing." He sounded a little bit embarrassed which didn't escape Sara's attention. She smiled back at him and stepped aside from the door to let Warrick enter the flat.

"She is fine, thanks. She has just eaten eight pancakes." She answered laughing. "I can't imagine where enough room for so many pancakes is in such a little girl."

"It's good to hear. And what about you?" His voice was full of concern just like the night before.

"Deja vu. I think I've already heard this conversation somewhere."

"Yeah, that's true but I hope this time you're feeling well, too." He looked at Sara seriously holding her gaze just to make sure that she wouldn't lie. Sara smiled at him kindly.

"Yeah, I think I managed to calm down. Thank you."

"I'm glad." After that they stood in silence for a while both of them unsure of what they should tell. But fortunately they were saved by a tiny voice coming from the kitchen door.

"I found it out. We should go for a walk then make some lunch and then we should make pancakes and muffins and then we could watch a movie."

At this both Warrick and Sara turned towards the voice.

"Oh." That was all that a surprised Sara managed to tell before she turned towards a now smiling Warrick and explained it to him that they had been discussing what to do that day and then turned back to Brenda.

"Honey, this list includes everything that we mentioned before." Her voice sounded surprised. She couldn't believe that she would like to do all of those things. "And you've just eaten all of the pancakes I made."

Brenda just looked at her with her big blue eyes.

"It sounds good to me." They heard Warrick saying and both of them looked at him questioningly. "I mean we could go to the zoo and have some lunch there. And after that we'll see what we can do about the pancakes and the muffins… If there is no objection." He added quickly when he saw the looks an the girls faces.

"I go and dress up." Brenda said excitedly and with a smile that Sara has never seen before and she went in her room. Sara just stood there and watched the retreating back of her daughter wondering what could have caused her wide smile and exited tone.

She was snapped out of her thought by Warrick's hand on her shoulder.

"Are you all right?"

She turned towards him with such a bright smile on her face which was very rare to be seen.

"Yeah, I'm definitely all right." She answered. She found it unbelievable but she was really all right and at this time she wasn't trying to convince others about it. At that moment everything was all right. "Just give us five minutes and then we can go." With this she also disappeared in her room.

CSI CSI CSI

Warrick and the girls spent an amazing day it the zoo. He was astonished how Sara and Brenda were alike. He simply enjoyed watching them exploring the zoo as if it were some kind of big adventure on their part. He felt like a father who took his daughters to the zoo and now he was guiding them not to get lost. It was amazing for him to see Sara so relaxed and happy. She was just smiling all the time and running from one den to the other excitedly while Brenda, who most of the time was walking besides him, led him by the hand wherever Sara was running. Warrick could have bet that there was no such a description in the zoo that the two of them hadn't read. Sara even explained everything to Warrick who, by the time they got home, became an expert on the different species of animals.

Warrick found Sara extremely adorable in this excited state and although Brenda was far less talkative than her mother, she also seemed to be enjoying herself and looked at every animal with curious eyes.

They had lunch in the zoo but by early afternoon Brenda got very tired and sleepy so the little group headed to Sara's apartment. At home Brenda had a nap while Sara and Warrick made the pancakes for Brenda who, surprisingly, managed to eat half a dozen of them. What is more, she insisted on making the muffins as well. This suggestion left the kitchen covered in flour and cocoa but finally all of them were sitting on the coach eating their muffins satisfied while discussing what they should watch.

Finally they decided on _The Beauty and the Beast_ after Warrick's strong protest against seeing one more animal that day which excluded _Finding Nemo_ and _Ice Age_ from the options. They had a very good time watching the movie and Warrick once again was surprised at Sara as she seemed to know the whole cartoon by heart.

After _The Beauty and the Beast_ they also managed to watch _Aladdin_ and _Hercules_ as well, although by the end of the third film it was only Warrick who hadn't fallen asleep. He was sitting on the coach with Sara's head in his lap and with Brenda at his feet. Somehow the little girl got to the floor during the movie which left the two adults sitting next to each other which then led to their current state. But Warrick didn't protest. In fact he felt very comfortable and he didn't mind if he could have stayed like this for longer. Much longer. But unfortunately the movie was over.

He stroked Sara's face gently and she stirred lightly. Warrick chuckled when a satisfied smiled appeared on the face of the woman lying in his lap. After Sara managed to wake up, Warrick offered that he put Brenda into bed while she could change. He was glad that he finally managed to persuade Sara to take off some nights. Although she really seemed to be alright, Warrick was sure that the events of the previous day took their toll on her and she needed some rest. And what is more she needed to be with Brenda.

To Sara's surprise the little girl didn't protest when she woke up and found herself in Warrick's arms she just blinked sleepily and went back to sleep. She was glad that Brenda was so relaxed in the presence of somebody else.

By the time Warrick put Brenda into bed, Sara had already climbed into her own bed and was almost asleep. Before he would have stepped into her room, he just stood in the doorway and watched her. Sara felt his eyes on her.

"You know you can tuck me in, too." She said smiling, however, her eyes remained closed so she didn't see the bright smile on her friend's face.

Warrick went to the bed and sat down on the edge of it. He carefully pulled the blanket up to her neck making sure that she was warm then he gave her a goodnight kiss on her cheek.

"Sweet dreams, Sara." He said and got up to head to home and then to work. Before he left the room he heard a muffled voice saying "I will, I will."

**TBC**

_So that was it. I know it's not a very good one but I hope it isn't so bad, either. I'm sorry that I didn't update sooner but I had other ideas as well and I felt like writing them down. I don't know when I'll write the next chapter but please, you, who are still with me, don't give up on me. I will finish this story, it just takes a little time._

_Thanks for reading and sorry for the mistakes!_


	5. Changing Lives

Changing Lives

**Changing Lives**

_Hey there! I'm back!!_

_Disclaimer: Do__ I have to repeat it? I don't own anything._

Chapter 5: Changing Lives

Sara was standing in the doorway of Brenda's room looking at the sleeping girl. It became one of her favorite activities lately. She was so peaceful and she found it rather hard to leave her. And she didn't even do so until Warrick came and dragged her away, of course, only after they had been looking at the little girl a little while. This became a sort of habit of theirs since…

_Sara was standing in the doorway of Brenda's room looking at the sleeping girl__ when a pair of arms encircled her from behind. She leant into Warrick embrace and sighed contently._

"_You know since you're the one who tugs her in, I'm sleeping alone."_

"_Oh, we can always change that." Warrick whispered suggestively into her ear then began kissing her neck. Sara turned in his arms and looked into his eyes. Slowly she sneaked her arms around his neck and brought Warrick's face closer to hers then kissed him passionately…_

That was their first night together. And true to Warrick's words, she's never slept alone since then. It seemed so unbelievable for her. The past year passed so quickly and so many things happened in it. For example Brenda became her daughter legally as well. She still remembered the day when she got the paper.

_It happened a few wee__ks after the accident. She was back to work. Actually, that day she was late from work so she was in a hurry. She had been rather busy whole day and didn't have time to check her mails so when she left for work, she just grabbed the pack of mails in case she would have a little time to take a look at them. And she did have time… after shift._

_Everybody was in the locker room preparing to leave when Sara noticed the forgotten pack of letter__s. She was about to put them into her bag when she noticed the sender of one of them. She immediately tore up the letter, which caused the others to stare at her curiously, and then she was just standing there looking at the paper._

_Being concerned, Warrick stepped next to her. They became very close since the accident._

"_Sara?"_

_Sara's head jerked up being surprised at the interruption. Tears glistened in her eyes and for a moment Warrick was really frightened but within moments Sara's arms were wrapped around him and he heard her happy voice._

"_I have her, Warrick, I have her."_

_This was enough to wrap his arms around her waist. He was smiling into her hair when she drew away a little. However, almost immediately he felt her lips on his. They were kissing for a long time when Grissom's discrete coughing made them realize where they were._

She still had to smile at that memory. It was rather funny. Or embarrassing. Everybody in the locker room was waiting for an answer and they were unable to utter a coherent sentence not to mention giving a much needed explanation given that they themselves were quite surprised at that kiss. Fortunately they took pity on them and left them alone. For the time being, at least.

They spent that afternoon in the park celebrating more than one thing. It felt so normal just to be sitting in the park and doing nothing in particular. She was happy about seeing Brenda enjoying herself. She had to admit that her daughter had changed a lot. Slowly she became more and more relaxed in the companion of other people. And she also made friend with a little girl who they had met in the park. And, which she found really amazing, she and Warrick became almost inseparable. Brenda really loved him and Warrick adored her. She clearly remembered the day when she realized that their lives had changed for ever.

_She had been together with Warrick for a couple of months when one afternoon she went home from shopping. Warrick was at home with Brenda. They were supposed to do her homework but of course she was sure that it wasn't the case. Somehow if it happened to be Warrick who helped Brenda preparing for school, it always ended in something else. So Sara was prepared to find them watching a movie, for example, or making muffins which was Brenda's favorite activity. But what Sara found when she entered her apartment __made her speechless._

_She heard loud laughter from the living room and when she reached to the door she saw that Brenda was lying on the floor and Warrick was kneeling next to her and tickling her mercilessly. Tears were flowing down Brenda's face while she was screaming and laughing at the same time._

"_Stop it, pleeeeeeeeeeeas!" She heard the little girl saying._

_After a little time Warrick took pity on her and stopped tickling her. He sat down leaning to the coach with a huge grin on his face. Brenda mirrored his action and for a while they were just sitting there but suddenly Brenda jumped at Warrick and now he was the one who was pleading for stopping. However, the little girl showed no mercy._

_Sara was stunned, to say the least. She had never seen Brenda like that. She was laughing wholeheartedly while tickling the man under her. She was happy beyond word that she could see her daughter like that and she loved Warrick immensely for making her like that._

_Finally she entered the room._

"_Hey! What are you doing?" She inquired trying to seem a little angry but failed as a huge smile was sitting on her face. Both of them looked up at her. "I hope that your homework is ready!"_

_It was enough to take a look at their guilty faces to find out the answer. They were really cute as they were sitting on the floor sitting next to each other with an identical expression on their faces._

"_It wasn't me, Mommy. Daddy started it all!"_

That was the moment when Sara realized that they were a family.

Standing in the doorway of her daughter's room, it still felt so new to have a family. It didn't matter how long she had had Brenda or how long she and Warrick had been married, there always was something which was a new experience for her. And she loved it. She loved that she didn't know what the following day would bring but whatever it would she would always have her husband and her daughter.

A little more than a year ago she couldn't have imagined to have a family and now she was standing there as a wife and, what's more important, as a mother. She always would remember how much she dreaded the others' opinion about her being a mother. But she would always remember, too, how groundless her fears were.

_A few days after __that Sara so 'discretely' kissed Warrick in the locker room, she decided that it was time to face the others and tell them everything. Her relationship with Warrick wasn't a secret given that everybody witnessed their above mentioned very first kiss but nobody had known yet what the reason of that kiss had been._

_So she asked Warrick, who had a night off then and was looking after Brenda, to bring her in in the morning. And he did so._

_They were walking in the corridor hand in hand heading towards the break room._

_By the time they reached to the break room, Greg and Nick, who were sitting in there, had already noticed them through the glass wall. Nick found the little girl, who was clinging to Warrick's hand, vaguely familiar but couldn't place her anywhere. He didn't have to do so, however, as they quickly entered the room._

"_Hey! Have you seen Sara? We should meet here." Both of the boys shook their head at that._

"_I'm here." He heard behind him. "Hey, sweetie! Did you sleep well?" Sara greeted her daughter and after she saw her nod, she turned to Warrick. "Thanks for bringing her in."_

"_No problem."_

"_Hey guys, sorry to interrupt you but would you like to tell us something?" Greg inquired them._

_For a moment Sara hesitated._

"_Well… Yes. Greg, Nick… Meet my…" At that moment she felt a little tug on her sleeve and glanced down at Brenda who was still holding Warrick's hand._

"_Mommy, I'm hungry."_

_Sara didn't have time to react as the boys in the room cut in._

"_Wow, I cant' believe it!" Nick began._

"_Me neither. And how on Earth could you two keep it a secret?" Greg continued but didn't give time for an answer as quickly added. "Hey, she really takes after you, Sara!"_

"_Yeah, it must be the eyes. But her hair colour is definitely from Warrick."_

And this was only the beginning of the boys rambling which lasted for a while. Finally when Sara got to explain the situation for them, Grissom and Catherine also entered the room. So she was spared the time to tell everything twice. Finally Nick managed to recall where he had seen the little girl before.

She was so relieved that everybody was happy about her. Catherine, whose opinion she feared the most, even offered her help if Sara needed anything. She was happy, Warrick was happy and everybody else was happy. Even Brenda warmed up a little.

Only one person remained whom Brenda should be introduced, or reintroduced. And it was Brass. Sara could still smile at his remark.

"_You know Sara when I told you back then that you didn't have to adopt her, I was serious."_

Maybe he was serious but Sara was sure that that was the best decision that she had ever made. Apart from letting Warrick into her new life.

Looking at her daughter she felt her husband's arms sneak around her. They clasped their hands on Sara's stomach and watched Brenda for a little longer.

Their life has definitely changed since last year.

**TBC**

_So, it again took me so much time to update but thank you for reading it anyway._

_I have to admit that I'm at a loss at this moment. Shall I write another chapter like this one (just to show other episodes of their life) or shall I write the last chapter? What do you think?_


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